Southampton Town Board Considers Amendments to Special Event and Rental Registry Regs

Amendments to the Southampton Town Code regulating special events and rental permits were recently considered by the Southampton Town Board, with public hearings on the measures held on May 9.

In 2007, the town adopted a rental registry law, requiring permits for homeowners looking to rent out their properties. This recent addition mandates the rental registry number be included in any advertisements for the rental.

It’s all about safety, Assistant Town Attorney Sean Cambridge explained.

Including the rental registry number assures potential tenants that the property has undergone an inspection verifying the landlord has installed such devices as smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

East Hampton Town has had a similar law on the books for years, Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman pointed out. He noted that when people choose to rent their places on platforms like Airbnb, “they may fly under the radar.”

Adding the requirement allows town code enforcement, which monitors the platforms, to see whose rentals are legally permitted.

Public Safety and Emergency Management Administrator Ryan Murphy said that monitoring the platforms is a time consuming effort. Potential landlords rarely post the address of a house they’re looking to rent, sending staff off on an odyssey of trying to figure out where the house might be.

“We look at sites and try to proactively identify if what’s being advertised is in accordance with a permit,” Murphy explained. “If a permit is listed with the ad, that takes out the guesswork. It’s a huge time-saver for us.”

It’s not about “gotcha!” the supervisor underscored. It’s about safety, he said, echoing Cambridge. “I think it’s an important step.”

Changes can occur after a property has been inspected, Murphy acknowledged. But registering a property with its concurrent inspection, ensures a baseline safety check has taken place. Failure to include the registry numbers on advertisements could mean suspension of the permit, as well as a fine.

First adopted in 2007, the rental registry was a means of tracking properties to prevent them from being rented illegally.

The law provides that no one may collect rent on a property that doesn’t have a valid permit. The permits expire after two years and applications must show the property has undergone a safety inspection by licensed architect, licensed engineer or licensed home inspector to ensure it complies with the town code, the state fire code and has a valid certificate of occupancy. If the homeowner doesn’t hire their own safety expert, town enforcement staff could conduct the on-site inspection.

Permit applications must include the names and contact information for the landlord and tenant, plus show how long occupancy is expected. The code spells out how many people may reside in the rental and articulates such presumptive evidence of over-occupancy as the existence of more than two mattresses in a bedroom. Fines for violating provisions of the rental code run the gamut from as low as $150 to as high as $8,000.

Statistics for rental permits through 2021 published on the town website show applications topped 1,900 in 2020, and averaged around 1,400 in 2019 and 2021. Illegal rental complaints varied from a high of 205 in 2020 to around 160 in 2019 and 2021.

Applications for rental permits, which cost $350, are on the town website. There’s also a page where people may look to see if a property has a valid permit by typing in the address or tax map number.

The amendment was adopted after the public hearing and will likely go into effect by July 1, depending on how long it takes for the state to file it.

Amendments to the town code regulating special events were suggested, according to Cambridge, in an effort to make the procedure for filing a special event permit clear and simplify enforcement.

All special events must benefit a charitable organization. Event organizers must include an agreement that lists the charities it will benefit.

The donation is described as “significant” in the law, but officials can’t set a specific number. According to Murphy, the town attorney’s office opined that it’s illegal to mandate a certain dollar amount or percentage of proceeds that must be donated.

“We have to look at what constitutes ‘significant,’” Schneiderman observed. He noted that events sponsored by out of town entities can disrupt the community. Organizers can attach themselves to a popular cause, then end up giving the cause so little money, “it’s not worth it,” he said. “People will accept the disturbance if the cause is something they believe in and the donation is significant,” Schneiderman said.

Existing provisions, said Murphy, include an after event action where the organizers have to show they fulfilled their promise to the cause. “We’re looking to capture a firm commitment to the donation,” he said.

New to the section governing special events is a provision targeting the tardy. It notes any application filed later than 90 days before the event could be subject to denial or a late fee.

First adopted in 1997, the special event chapter of the town code prohibits events that take place for the express purpose of advertising and selling products, unless it’s a farmer’s market.

The amendment adds a blight mitigation fee to any fines imposed for violating the special events regulations. It also adds rules for hosting events on properties burdened with covenants and restrictions filed with the county. For those, the host must provide notarized consent from parties with legal interest in the property. Failure to do so is grounds for denial.

If the event is planned where the town has purchased development rights, the applicants have to submit fees of $2,500 to $5,000, depending on expected attendance, to the town’s blight mitigation fund. In either case, no more than three events per year may be held.

Murphy said his office reviews about 100 special event permits each summer. Anything advertised and open to the public falls within the code requiring a permit. Invite-only events are exempted.

The hearing was closed on May 9, with a 30-day written period permitted.